1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mediation apparatus, an installation system, an installation method, and an installation program.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, image forming apparatuses, such as digital copying machines and multifunction peripherals, have been required to provide customizable functions depending on preferences and purposes of users. In a known system for managing addition and deletion of the functions to and from such image forming apparatuses, a management apparatus manages a state of software such as a plug-in for each of a plurality of image forming apparatuses (valid or invalid, for example) via a mediation apparatus.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2004-139149 discloses a technology in which license management of computer programs executable in a peripheral device, such as an image forming apparatus, is performed by using a database that dynamically manages an ID of a license file including the computer program ID and the usable amount of the computer programs so as to manage the right of use of the computer program for the peripheral device.
In the conventional technologies as described above, software to be installed and a license key of the software are acquired from a server usually at a scheduled time when the software is installed. As a result, if a failure occurs in the server or a network at the scheduled time for the installation, the software to be installed cannot be installed at the scheduled time.
In view of the circumstances described above, there is a need to provide a mediation apparatus, an installation system, an installation method, and an installation program, by which software to be installed can be installed at a scheduled time even if a failure occurs in a server or a network.